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听力短文原文
Passage One
In America, white tailed deer are morenumerous than ever before, so abundant in fact that they've become a suburban nuisanceand a health hazard.
Why can't the herd be thinned theold-fashioned way? The small community of North Haven on Long Island is home tosome six hundred to seven hundred deer. The department of EnvironmentalConservation estimates the optimum population at 60. The town has been browsedbare of vegetation except where gardens and shrubs are protected by highfences.
Drivers routinely collide with deer andthere are so many dead bodies left by the side of the road that the town hasmade it a deal with a local pet cemetery to collect and dispose of the bodies.Some people in the town have become ill from deer transmitted diseases. On theoccasions when hunting has been tried, local animal rights people have workedto secure court orders against the hunts. And when that is failed, they stopthe hunters, banging on pots and pans to alert the deer. Town meetings calledto discuss the problem inevitably dissolved into confrontations.
The activists believe simply that the deerare not the problem. Some communities have even discussed the possibility ofbringing wolves back into the ecological mix. That means wolves in the suburbsof New York. It is almost too wonderful not to try it. The wolves would killdeer of course. They would also terrorize and kill dogs and cats which is notwhat the suburban dwellers have in mind.
Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passageyou have just heard
Q16. What do we learn about white-taileddeer in North Haven?
Q17. Why do local animal rights people bangon pots and pans?
Q18.What would happen if wolves were brought back into the ecological mix?
Passage Two
And now, if you'll walk this way, ladiesand gentlemen, the next room we're going to see is the room in which the familyused to hold their formal dinner parties and even occasionally entertain headsof state and royalty. However, they managed to keep this room friendly andintimate. And I think you'll agree. It has a very informal atmosphere, quiteunlike some grand houses you visit. The curtains were never drawn, even atnight, so guests got a view of the lake and fountains outside which were lit upat night – a very attractive sight. As you can see, ladies and gentlemen, theguests were seated very informally around this oval table, which would add tothe relaxed atmosphere. The table dates from the 18th century and is made fromSpanish oak. It's rather remarkable for the fact that although it's extremelybig, it's supported by just six rather slim legs. However, it seems to havesurvived like that for 200 years. So it's probably going to last a bit longer.The chairs which go with the table are not a complete set. There wereoriginally six of them. They are interesting for the fact that they are veryplain and undecorated for the time, with only one plain central panel at theback and no armrests. I myself find them rather uncomfortable to sit in forvery long, but people were used to more discomfort in the past. And now, ladiesand gentlemen, if you'd like to follow me into the great hall…
Questions 19 to 22 are based on the passageyou have just heard
Q19. What do we learn about the speaker?
Q20. What does the speaker say about theroom they are visiting?
Q21. What is said about the oval table in theroom?
Q22.What does the speaker say about the chairs?
Passage Three
Janet James was 22 years old when she wasdiagnosed with MS—a disease that attacks the body's nerves. She has justgraduated from college and got a job at an advertising agency when she began tosense that something strange was going on inside her body. When James realizedhow severe her illness was, she knew she had better hurry up and live life. MSis the biggest crippler of young adults. And although she didn't have many symptoms,she knew it was just a matter of time. First on her agenda was to pursue herdream of hosting a pop music programme. She worked at a radio station for ayear, always aware that her body was degenerating. Then her best friend movedaway. And one night James began screaming, "I got to go! I got togo!" Two weeks later, she arrived at Alaska, thousands of miles from herfriends, her family and her past. "Everything fell into a place", sherecalls. A 23-year-old girl with an incurable disease can fly to Alaska andeverything can work out. The MS attacks came and went. And most of the timethey hardly slowed her down. James hiked, fished, learnt to sail andexperimented with hot air ballooning. "I lived for adventure", shesays. "Nobody ever had a better time or did more exotic strange thingsthan I did in an 80-year period." Inevitably however, the day came whenshe was so weakened that she had to return to Pittsburgh, her home town. Thereshe began relieving her adventures by writing a book about them. Her book waspublished in 1993.
Questions 23 to 25 are based on the passageyou have just heard.
Q23. What does the speaker say about MS?
Q24. What did Janet James decide to do after herdisease was diagnosed?
Q25. What's sort of person can we infer JanetJames is? the ecological mix?
